A collection of things to enjoy

“Some musical stories are more interesting than others. The story of an Englishman born in Calcutta, enlivened by the sounds of classic sixties music, transplanted to Australia by the dawn of the seventies, and then shut out of the musical ambitions he held so dear for thirty plus years before triumphantly reconnecting with that first love is the sort of tale one often finds in the movies,” said Joshua Stryde (of indiemusicreviews.net) when describing Rhett May and his incredible journey with music.

Rhett May’s newest album “Creatures of the Night” is truly one of the most exceptional albums to hit the music scene in recent years. Although undeniably a rock album, the music incorporates elements of pop, jazz, funk and psychedelic. It was absolutely May’s diverse and international life that lead him to create such a versatile and impressive album. He showcases his mastery of the guitar as well as the sitar, an instrument rarely used in rock music. In addition to creating such a phenomenal album, Rhett went the extra mile and shot a creative and gripping video to go with the title song. You can watch the video on his YouTube channel.

To get a taste of what the album has to offer, head to Noisetrade where Rhett is giving away a FREE DOWNLOAD of “Lexxi May”. If you love what you hear, then head to iTunes to get yourself a copy of the album.

Musician Rhett May in Rutledge Lane on Friday, October 16, 2015, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. May has penned a song about the ice epidemic in a bid to help stop the spiral of drug abuse across Australia. Picture: Hamish Blair

Jan Daley’s new album, “The Way of a Woman” is catching the attention of more than just the smooth jazz crowd. Fans from other music realms find themselves getting absorbed in the magnificent world that Jan Daley has created in this one of a kind album. Even Bette Midler fans find themselves singing along to her beautiful smooth jazz tracks.

Daley’s new smooth jazz album features eleven songs- six of which were written by Daley herself.The others are all incredible songs from the days of the Great American Songbook (a collection of the most popular songs and jazz standards from the early 20th century).Jan studied for years under the mentorship of Jack Segal, the original writer of “When Sunny Gets Blue.”Her extensive career and wealth of experience undoubtedly helped shape the exceptional smooth jazz artist Jan is today.

For a taste, you can download the title song from her EP “When Sunny Gets Blue” FOR FREE from Noisetrade. To learn more about Daley and to keep up with her latest updates, check out her Facebook and her official website here: www.jandaley.com/.

In a recent review by Razorfish (http://razorfishreviews.blogspot.com/#!/2017/04/rhett-may.html) Rhett May’s brand new album “Creatures of the Night” was described as, “one of the most vital rock releases you’ll hear in recent memory.” This is just the beginning of a glowing review that highlights all the incredible components of Rhett’s new album.

Rhett May has been playing music and performing for forty years now from his first band at fifteen years old. In that time Rhett has gained an incredible amount of experience and mastery of the rock genre. This album showcases the work of a true professional and the clarity and complexity of his guitar solos are a testament to this.

This thirteen-song album is especially remarkable because of the cohesive intent with which it was written. The songs flow into each other seamlessly and, instead of a collection of singles, it is a complete work of art that is more thought-out than most albums in recent history.

With the album, May also released a fantastic Youtube video to the title song of the album “Creatures of the Night.” You can watch the video on his YouTube channel.

To get a taste of what the album has to offer, head to Noisetrade where Rhett is giving away a FREE DOWNLOAD of “Lexxi May”. If you love what you hear, then head to iTunes to get yourself a copy of the album.

Musician Rhett May in Rutledge Lane on Friday, October 16, 2015, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. May has penned a song about the ice epidemic in a bid to help stop the spiral of drug abuse across Australia. Picture: Hamish Blair

Trombones have long been under-utilized in music today. However, with dedicated players like Geoff Alpert and Dave Bargeron becoming more well known, the trombone may yet come back to the foreground. Geoff Alpert’s smooth jazz music has come from a long path of struggle. He lost his wife to cancer in 2002 after a long hiatus from music and, after this horrible event, found his way back to the musical community. The support he received from Darryl Williams and Gail Johnson allowed him to output his emotion and passion into smooth jazz music. He blended this with his love for the martial art Ken-Ka-Kung Fu and found a truly inspired fusion in his music.

The incredible way that Geoff works smoothjazz into R&B, pop, latin and funk grooves is remarkable and that he does this all with the trombone in the forefront of the sound is even more impressive. If you haven’t yet, you can listen to the album on iTunes, CD Baby and Amazon.

Jan’s newest album titled “The Way of a Woman” continues to make its way onto the smooth jazz radio airwaves with more and more stations adding her album into the mix. The album which consists of the songs off her “When Sunny Gets Blue” EP PLUS 6 new songs that Jan wrote herself.

One particular track that you’ll find on the record called “The One She’s Been Waiting For” has received a little bit of a remix that makes the song very personal for Jan. She has released a special Memorial Day version of the song that you can now purchase on CD Baby. She made a few lyric changes in touching tribute to all the men, women, families and friends of the Armed Forces including her father who perished in Germany in 1945 while on a mission to pick up P.O.W’s, after World War II, whom she never got a chance to meet. The song is also accompanied by a video that you can watch on YouTube.

Jan continues to create incredible smooth jazz music and proving time and time again that she is an artist to watch. If you haven’t done so yet, take a listen to her new album on iTunes. If that’s not enough Jan for you, you can download the title song from her EP “When Sunny Gets Blue” FOR FREE from Noisetrade.

To learn more about Daley and to keep up with her latest updates, check out her Facebook and her official website: www.jandaley.com/.

It is truly rare to find the kind of dedication and emotional investment in music that Geoff Alpert displays with every note he plays. After a 30 year hiatus from music when Geoff dedicated himself as a husband and a father, he has returned to the scene and brought with him a groovy smooth jazz based sound that features the trombone and that is making a huge impact on the smooth jazz scene. Although Geoff’s music contains some very smoothjazz-oriented grooves, he pushes himself to incorporate other genres such as R&B, which results in a beautiful fusion of genres.

Geoff lost his wife to cancer in 2002 and, after soul searching, was motivated to re-join the musical community. He took the emotion and passion from this loss and, after meeting director Gail Johnson and bassist Darryl Williams, was lead to create a musical statement and image that closely ties to his life story. Geoff’s passion for the spiritual Eastern Martial Arts discipline is also an integral part of his music and inspiration.

“The latest release from Australian based singer/songwriter Rhett May, ‘Creatures of the Night’, is a thirteen song collection solidifying his standing as one of the indie scene’s best musical artists,” is just the beginning of a glowing review by Scottie Carlito of Carlito’s Music Blog .

Carlito goes on to praise the fidelity of the album as well as the cohesive balanced feel that gives the entire album so much character. He describes listening to “Creatures of the Night” as a, “unified coherent listening experience.”

The album showcases May’s phenomenal songwriting abilities as well as his versatility in both singing as well as guitar playing. Carlito describes how the album has hints of many genres while still maintaining an undoubtedly rock-centric sound. He also describes how successful the title track is while also holding it’s own as an experimental and psychedelic tune.

To get a taste of what the album has to offer, head to Noisetrade where Rhett is giving away a FREE DOWNLOAD of “Lexxi May”. If you love what you hear, then head to iTunes to get yourself a copy of the album.

Musician Rhett May in Rutledge Lane on Friday, October 16, 2015, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. May has penned a song about the ice epidemic in a bid to help stop the spiral of drug abuse across Australia. Picture: Hamish Blair